Same-sex couples are facing barriers to accessing NHS fertility treatment, with some forced to pay up to £20,000 before they can access care, according to a study.
BPAS Fertility, which intends to launch its own not-for-profit fertility service in the autumn, found that more than a quarter of NHS clinical commissioning groups (29%) will not fund the cost of donor sperm to be used in IVF treatments.
Most (76%) of the 106 CCGs in England require a minimum of three artificial insemination cycles to be paid for by female same-sex couples, with more than a quarter (29 CCGs) saying 10-12 cycles were needed, creating a bill of up to £20,000.